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From:TheBahamasWeekly.com Sports To mark the 10th year of the island’s best-supported summer camp, the English Premier League is going to treat the youngsters to an all-expenses-paid trip to Miami to watch two of the world’s best pro teams in action. The two boys and two girls will be getting top-price tickets to the final of the Guinness International Champions Cup, a tournament being played between eight leading European clubs. Each is a household name – the current EPL leaders Liverpool, the world-famous Manchester United and their neighbours Manchester City from the UK; Inter, AC Milan and Roma from Serie A, the Italian league; the legendary real Madrid from Spain and Olympiakos from Greece. This awesome treat is only open to camp attendees and will go to the four who show the best all-round attitude at the event which runs from June 23 to June 27. They will be chosen during the week by Jenna Martin, Robbie Pringle and Abbie Sadler, the camp’s visiting UK pro coaches who are taking vacation to help local youngsters improve their skills. The EPL, whose games according to independent research are watched by 4.7 billion people - more than half the world’s population - and televised by 80 different broadcasters in 212 territories, was the main supporter of the camp which has been hosted by Freeport Rugby and Football Club at its ground at East Settlers Way since 2004. For the first few years it sent a series of well-known international players to act as coaches – two of them are now seen regularly on Bahamian TV screens analyzing soccer matches, Warren Barton on Fox Soccer Channel and Robbie Earle on NBC. Then, following the camp’s early success, EPL chief executive Richard Scudamore decided to sponsor the building of new pitches on the old fire station site which more than doubled FRFC’s playing area. The club responded by creating him an honorary life member for his contribution to the club’s expansion and its success generally. Scudamore said: “This Guinness Cup tournament is giving millions of soccer fans in the US an opportunity to see the game played at the highest level and I think it will be a real thrill for the youngsters to go to the final to see in the flesh how top players perform.” Youth soccer has flourished on Grand Bahama since the early days of the camp, particularly among the girls, and the league was delighte to mark the 10th anniversary in this way. The tournament takes place at 12 different venues in the US including, New York City, Chicago, Washington and Dallas between July 23 and August 4. The final takes place at the 76,100-capacity Sun Life Stadium, Miami. Camp organiser Derek Archer said: “The winning kids will have a fantastic time but they will have earned their treat. The children who attend this camp are always very enthusiastic but this year they will have an extra incentive to do well. This will not just be about skill. The winners will have shown a really positive attitude and that they are real team players as well. “We will make sure their reward is a great time at this huge sporting event. It will be an experience to remember. But, I repeat, no one will have a chance of going unless they enroll in the camp. “It has become a huge part of the sporting calendar on Grand Bahama and many hundreds have taken part over the last 10 years. Some who have attended are now coaching kids themselves and others have won soccer scholarships to US colleges. “Soccer is the most popular sport in the world by a huge margin – far, far bigger than any mainstream US sport, like baseball, basketball or NFL - and so far as our region is concerned is due to really lift off with David Beckham’s announcement he is to set up an MLS franchise in Miami. With that and this year’s World Cup Finals in Brazil in June, hopefully there will be a big surge in interest in the sport in Grand Bahama.”
Camp registration forms are available at Town and Country,
Yellow Pine Street; Animale at Port Lucaya Marketplace, and the rugby club in
the evenings. They are also available
attached below on TheBahamasWeekly.com at the base of this article.
Attendees get the usual five days of pro coaching, two sets
of uniform, lunch and other goodies.
And, this year, the chance to watch the world’s best.
(* Can't see the Form? Click HERE)
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